How could a policy designed to benefit newborn babies – addressing the serious problems of infant mortality and childhood poverty – provoke such a vitriolic reaction? While it sickens me to the stomach, part of me – as a social scientist – understands the hostility of Scotland’s comfortable middle-class unionists towards
Voyage from one Baby to Another
Zuka, their other son who is in the throes of that developmental crisis known to every parent as the terrible twos, got a selection box. He tore this open immediately and sent Maltesers flying all over the room – exactly what I would have done if there were no rules.
Madeleine McCann: The Earliest Account of the Abduction
A person or persons unknown had used some implement to crowbar open the external aluminium blackout blinds and forced open the window to the children’s room at apartment 5A before climbing in to snatch the sleeping toddler from her bed.
Meeting Ourselves as the Children We Were
After a while I decided to tell him who I was. Without missing a step in his Wellington boots or looking round, he said only “Ah ken that.” This was an unexpected response that forced me to look back hard to see if I could ever remember meeting an older me. I couldn’t.
Despicable Acts of Wickedness in the Midst of Tragedy
Follow @UrFhasaidh Yesterday I was relieved to read an update from an old college drinking buddy announcing that he was safe and well after the earthquake in Nepal where he has been volunteering. Regrettably we haven’t stayed in touch, but we are linked to one another over social media and so I was aware that … Continue reading Despicable Acts of Wickedness in the Midst of Tragedy
Wreck-It Ralph: A Theodicy Out of the Mouths of Babes
Follow @UrFhasaidh Don’t laugh. It isn’t every day I watch a children’s movie, but for a couple of reasons I have made an exception for Wreck-It Ralph. Someone special in my life loves kids’ movies, and I have a thing for retro video games, so this was a film I was going to see eventually, … Continue reading Wreck-It Ralph: A Theodicy Out of the Mouths of Babes
Children, Marriage Equality, Distortions, and Lies
Follow @UrFhasaidh Writing for the Iona Institute’s blog on Friday Ben Conroy gave a summation of his own take on the arguments of the Yes campaign (Does the Yes side believe in the ‘Irish mammy’ or not?, 10 April 2015). Taking Joan Burton’s story of the Irish mother who wants the best for her children … Continue reading Children, Marriage Equality, Distortions, and Lies
Let’s all be very Modern and Neuter our Children
It is entirely possible that Rónán was sending me up on one, but I can’t be quite sure. Over a long discussion this friend of mine introduces me to the idea, which he sees as quite ethical, of raising children free from gender stereotypes. According to Megan Gibson, writing for the Time (‘Parents Who Hid … Continue reading Let’s all be very Modern and Neuter our Children
Random Public Journal 